Builders of altars 2

In the first part of this teaching we saw that there were men who did altars with positive purposes and that is where He is manifested; this is why it is impressive that inside the wide universe He chose the Earth to manifest His glory, being the Earth maybe one of the smallest planets in the whole universe, the Bible says that this planet is the footstool of His feet, but not only the Earth in general but he chose a place to put His name and He is manifested there; however where there are 2 or more gathered in His name, He is there. But then, one of the places that he aims for our encounter is the altar, it is like the groom and the bride before get marry, they set a place to change of life because marriage is a change of life; then it means that the altars are like dimensional doors.

This is why we see in the Bible that what we do in Earth has consequences in heven, this is why we have to dedicate our house every time we move to a new house because we don ́t know what could happen or did the people who lived there before us; they could have dedicate al altar to Death, so we need to understand that we have to break down any altar of idolatry because where we are we will make altars dedicated to God, but first we need to make an altar in our heart so God can be manifested there.

When we achieve to have an altar in our heart dedicated to God we could probable have being doing things wrong, but when God sees our real motivation He can correct that initiative, we can see an example of this when Jacob didn ́t want to give food to his brother if he didn ́t give him his primogeniture first, it wasn ́t the right way but God corrected his initiative.

In the first part of this study we also saw 14 people who had the right initiative to rise altars, among them we say Noah; what did he do? He preserved his family, Abraham made an altar to offer his firstborn son; so they all did altars that marked amazing hazards, but most of all they pleased God. The Bible also aims people who make altars with the wrong initiative; let ́s see:

SAUL – initiative of revenge

1Sa 14:31-35 KJ2000 And they struck down the Philistines that day from Michmash to Aijalon: and the people were very faint. 32 And the people rushed upon the spoil, and took sheep, and oxen, and calves, and slew them on the ground: and the people did eat them with the blood. 33 Then they told Saul, saying, Behold, the people sin against the LORD, in that they eat with the blood. And he said, you have transgressed: roll a great stone unto me this day. 34 And Saul said, Disperse yourselves among the people, and say unto them, Bring me here every man his ox, and every man his sheep, and slay them here, and eat; and sin not against the LORD in eating with the blood. And all the people brought every man his ox with him that night, and slew them there. 35 And Saul built an altar unto the LORD: the same was the first altar that he built unto the LORD.

Saul built that altar in a imprudent way, besides that was not his duty because there were priest for that, Saul had a feeling of revenge, but that is a difficult situation that we can ́t fall into; it is not possible that pray God to kill someone who hasn ́t hurt us, because God said that we must pray for our enemies but in their favor.

BALAAM – initiative of curse

It is impressive that Balaam was the only prophet of the Old Testament who was not Jew, he said of himself that he was fallen and with the eyes open. He had the feeling of curs Israel, and that is where we must know that God turn curses into blessings, just like it could be happening today in our lives; people hates us because we are Christians and they curse us for that, but God turns those curses into blessings.

RUBEN, GAD AND HALF TRIBE OF MANASES – initiative of competition

When we see the history of what happened with these people, we see that before crossing the Jordan river they built an altar to serve as a deviation for others couldn ́t get to the other place to worship God; it was an hindrance just like today happens between congregations, they compete with each other, when somebody organize an activity comes the other pretending to do something alike with the purpose to deviate the motivation because they have personal interests. We must be careful of not falling in that kind of situations because they don ́t please God.

MANASSEH – initiative of repentance

Manasseh was a bad king, he built evil altars, he haunted the prophets of God, but one day God talked to him:

2Ch 33:10-16 KJ2000 And the LORD spake to Manasseh, and to his people: but they would not hearken. 11 Wherefore the LORD brought upon them the captains of the host of the king of Assyria, which took Manasseh among the thorns, and bound him with fetters, and carried him to Babylon. 12And when he was in affliction, he besought the LORD his God, and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers, 13 And prayed unto him: and he was intreated of him, and heard his supplication, and brought him again to Jerusalem into his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that the LORD he was God. 14 Now after this he built a wall without the city of David, on the west side of Gihon, in the valley, even to the entering in at the fish gate, and compassed about Ophel, and raised it up a very great height, and put captains of war in all the fenced cities of Judah. 15 And he took away the strange gods, and the idol out of the house of the LORD, and all the altars that he had built in the mount of the house of the LORD, and in Jerusalem, and cast them out of the city. 16And he repaired the altar of the LORD, and sacrificed thereon peace offerings and thank offerings, and commanded Judah to serve the LORD God of Israel.

In the middle of the anguish, he claimed God and He gave him mercy, it could be that today somebody is acting wrong, but if that person repents, God can receive him if he surrenders with a really repenting heart of all evil, let ́s remember that God doesn ́t despise a contrite and broken heart.